Al Franken

Alexander Hamilton I think was the one who said that--when he was talking about separation of powers, he said the legislature has the money, the executive power has the force, and the judiciary has neither.

I was interested to see that you were tribal counsel to the Narragansett Indian tribe.

We are not going to hire contractors who do mandatory, binding arbitration on things like sexual assault.

I am incredibly impressed with your background and your experience

What that 5 percent means and you don't seem to know.

the ultimate role of a judge is to follow the law, not make the law

I think diversity on the court is a great idea.

It is a grave concern if we foreclose the opportunity for a victim to have their day in court to be fully heard.

Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

Healthcare reform means cancer patients receiving care that is available, adequate, and affordable.

Do you think there'd be a benefit in this country having a unified system for billing and payments in healthcare?

Healthcare reform means people not having to choose between their life and their life savings.

If we require all insurance companies to use a common payment system, we will save billions of dollars in administrative costs.

So, we need more primary care physicians, wouldn't you say?

When I travel around Minnesota, people ask me over and over again, 'What is Congress doing to make healthcare more affordable?'

It's unbelievable to me that every insurance company has different forms and processes that providers have to navigate.

I commend Chairman Baucus for including an amendment to incentivize value in Medicare.

Healthcare reform means that no American loses their life because they can't afford screenings or treatment.

As Senator Franken has said, we also are struggling to take the perverse incentives out of our system that reward quantity instead of quality.

Do you find anything wrong with that picture?

It's plastic, but we Xerox it; in Germany, they swipe it.

If we were to create a streamlined system for all payers, would the Medicare administration structure for billing and payment be a good option to buildupon?

I believe it's zero.

One of the most logical ways to get costs under control is to transform how we pay for and incentivize healthcare.

Can we pay for healthcare if we bring up that number from 60 to 90?